He killed Dartford electrician Stephen Cameron in 1996

Road-rage killer Kenneth Noye is to be transferred to an open prison after Justice Secretary David Lidington accepted a Parole Board recommendation.

Bexleyheath-born Noye, now 70, was convicted of murder in April 2000 and sentenced to life with a minimum term of 16 years, after stabbing 21-year-old electrician Stephen Cameron from Dartford to death in an attack on the M25 in Kent in 1996.

He was recommended for release a year ago but then-justice secretary Michael Gove blocked the move, much to the relief of the victim’s family.

However, Noye then won a High Court appeal in February against a decision blocking him access to an open prison, and a parole board recommended the transfer last month.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Public protection is our top priority and transfers to open conditions are made after a thorough, expert, risk assessment carried out by the independent Parole Board.”

One of Britain’s most notorious criminals, Noye had been jailed for handling bullion stolen in the infamous 1983 Brink’s-Mat robbery and was released two years before the M25 attack.

He went on the run after killing Mr Cameron and was arrested in Spain in 1998.

A plan will now be drawn up for the timing of the transfer, which is expected to take place within six weeks, while officials will also weigh up which establishment Noye will be moved to.

Open prisons have lower security than “closed” jails.

Transfers from higher security categories to open conditions are generally part of a long-term path towards release, depending on the prisoner’s progress in a number of areas.

Offenders’ suitability for returning to the community are tested by exposing them to conditions more similar to those they would encounter on the outside.

Noye would be assessed again by the Parole Board before he can be released.

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